Page 70 of A Dawn Of Blood

Dryden lets out a dry chuckle. “Holy Word, Anna, you sure you’re not being too optimistic here?”

I raise my eyebrows at him.

He turns serious. “Yeah, no, I get the dilemma.”

“And?” I ask. “Thoughts?”

He shrugs. “I guess I’d like to do whateveryouthink is best.”

“So incredibly helpful, thank you,” I say with a teasing smile. “Nimueh?”

But when I turn to her, I find her staring out the window with an absent look on her face. “Nimueh,” I call out a little more sharply.

Her head snaps to me. “Yes?”

“Thoughts?”

She scratches her head, her gaze going distant again. “I was wondering about the kind of world in which some beings find their life’s meaning in quiet evenings with the family, and some in world domination.”

I fail to stop myself from letting out a laugh, but I quickly turn serious. “I meant thoughts about the issue at hand.”

Raising her eyebrows, she nods thoughtfully. “Ah, apologies. Maintaining a sense of wonder about the universe has been my lifeline while in Nasgard. And I’ve spent approximately eleven centuries in there, so it might take me a couple of months to stop spacing out like this.” She shakes her head as if to sharpen her focus. And all of a sudden, she’s completely present and frighteningly serious. “Anyway, it was the two options we were discussing, is that right? The slow one that might increase our chances of success and the quick one that might end up in defeat before we’ve even started.”

My mind wants to linger on what she said about wonder, but I nod. “Yes, what do you think?”

She shrugs. “What’s the point of being the Aurora if you’re going to spend all your time hiding?”

For a second, I just keep staring at her. Then my mouth curls into a smile. “Old Norse temples and graveyards it is then.”

And with her way of dealing with stuff, the old bastard has given me an idea on what to do with Cain as well.

Chapter 53

Despite the nervousness, it’s with a newfound spring in my step that I make my way to where we’re keeping Cain, Nymeria in tow. As Nimueh has reminded me, a situation can only be as depressing as you let it. So I’m having dinner with him, I’m getting him to tell me what we need to know about Baldur’s ancestors, and I’m not letting his awful attitude get in the way of our bonding.

Just as I take the last turn and spot the entrance into the Main Hall, his scent drifts over to me. It makes my determination waver for a second, but I just keep going. I take a deep breath and I smile.

“Hello again,” I greet chirpily as I step into the room, finding him already watching me. He’s in the cage, sitting on the chair with his legs spread and his forearms on his thighs, his eyes narrowed at me.

“There’s someone I’d like you to meet,” I say as I look down to give Nymeria the signal, only to see her already rushing in his direction.

Before she can even get close, though, he lets out a low snarl.

She stops, tilting her head at him.

Then she tries again, reaching the bars only to have him flash his fangs at her.

My heart sinking, I watch her retreat, all confused and hurt.

Ignore it, I tell myself. I take a seat at the table I’ve asked Dryden to set up, a pang of disappointment shooting through me when he looks away and fixes his eyes on the wall to his right. The dinner is already served, on this one as well as the one in Cain’s cage.

“You must be hungry,” I say as I give him a once-over. They tell me he’s been rejecting food. It’s only been a day so there’s no real threat to his health. Still, I’m eager for him to stop with the nonsense, so I gesture at the plate. “I don’t know what you like to eat, so I’ve asked for a little bit of everything.”

He doesn’t move a muscle, let alone start on the dinner.

I give him a wide smile. “You seem to be intent on messing with all my plans — of letting you out of the cage, of getting your basic needs taken care of…”

No reaction.

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